Schools

NY Times - Cellphones have become a school scourge. More than 70 percent of high school teachers say student phone distraction is a “major problem,” according to a survey this year by Pew Research.That’s why states are mounting a bipartisan effort to crack down on rampant student cellphone use. So far this year, at least eight states have passed laws, issued orders or adopted rules to curb phone use among students during school hours.

The issue isn’t simply that some children and teenagers compulsively use apps like Snap, TikTok and Instagram during lessons, distracting themselves and their classmates. In many schools, students have also used their phones to bully, sexually exploit and share videos of physical attacks on their peers. But cellphone restrictions can be difficult for teachers to enforce without schoolwide rules requiring students to place their phones in lockers or other locations. 

Telegraph UK - Children will be taught how to spot extremist content and fake news online in a revamp of the curriculum following last week’s riots. Schools will use lessons such as English, ICT (information and  ommunication technology) and maths to “arm” pupils against “putrid conspiracy theories”, the Education Secretary has said.

Bridget Phillipson told The Telegraph that pupils as young as five would be given the critical thinking skills to identify misinformation online under the new plans.The intervention came as a 13-year-old boy was charged on Saturday with violent disorder in Manchester following trouble in the area.

Ms Phillipson said: “It’s more important than ever that we give young people the knowledge and skills to be able to challenge what they see online. That’s why our curriculum review will develop plans to embed critical skills in lessons to arm our children against the disinformation, fake news and putrid conspiracy theories awash on social media. Our renewed curriculum will always put high and rising standards in core subjects first – that’s non-negotiable. But alongside this we will create a broad, knowledge-rich curriculum that widens access to cultural subjects and gives pupils the knowledge and skills they need to thrive at work and throughout life.”